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Wednesday, December 23, 2015

Normally, I pay more attention to when my virtual career as an online journalist began, though yours truly was so occupied with delivering the news, it slipped my mind this year. But I did remember one other milestone: the anniversary of when I came into Second Life, or "Rezzday." It was nine years ago when I first stepped into Second Life.

I had gotten my start into going online with America Online, and stuck with them for a long time, partially because of the easy to remember email address I had. This meant that I was stuck with dial-up. Some online friends were starting to talk about online gaming, notably "World of Warcraft." But one mentioned a place known as Second Life, a virtual world that allowed one to build all kinds of places there. And also to design one's own avatar. My friend would show me the screenshots of their avatar: an anthro lioness whom was dressed up in everything from a Victorian dress to a harem girl outfit.

Finally I signed up with a fast speed service that allowed me to keep my existing email address. I could finally check out the two places my friends were talking about so much. In World of Warcraft, I joined two friends there with Horde accounts, setting up a Tauren druid. But I also decided to give Second Life a try. So on December 17, 2006, I went to secondlife.com, downloaded the client software for the computer I had, then set up an account.

Two decisions I had were the name and the starting appearance. Thinking a bit, I remembered a favorite character from the roleplaying games I did with real-life friends: Bixyl. "Shuftan" was close to the old character's last name, so that's what I used. As for appearance, there were several styles of clothes and hair style and color among several human avatars, and one non-human avatar: the "Furry." As a science-fiction nut, I close the latter.

And with that, I turned the viewer on, pressed the button to log in, and what I saw was a sea of gray and shapes. As the seconds ticked on, the shapes gradually took form and slowly went from grey to color. My avatar took shape before me, and I saw I was on a piece of land with grass, trees, and signs and walkways. The sign near me had blurry words for a while, but after some moments they became clear, "Welcome to Orientation Island," with an arrow showing which way to proceed. Taking a look at the controls, I found those for movement, then for sound and music. The music button when pressed, I began hearing smooth gentle background music, as if in an elevator, with the occasional line, "If you open up your mind, you can build a whole new wor-ld."

Progress through the beginners course was slow. I didn't know the term "lag" at the time, though I was thinking molasses. I came across directions on avatar appearance, chatting, and others, but walking from point to point was slow, taking some minutes, and the viewer was prone to crashing. There were others on the course. Some stuck around long enough to rezz, others remained gray as they walked on ahead of me. At one point, events in real life needed my attention, and I had to turn off the viewer for a while. But I would later return to finish things. Eventually I would finish the course, but it took me a while, probably over two hours to cover the amount of territory the same place would take just five minutes to cover when I did a few days ago to take the pictures for this article. There was a teleport to Help Island at the end. But I didn't linger there for additional directions. I went out to explore a few random locations.

A couple days later, my friend and I chatted briefly in an AOL chatroom and we decided to meet up inworld. After I logged in, she Instant-messaged me there, and explaining what a teleport request was, sent me one. Meeting up, she explained a few things and showed me more pictures of scenes acrosss Second Life, the most memorable was of a prank a busty girl played on a guy whom was slouched forward from being away-from-keyboard. She also gave me a thousand Linden dollars to get another avatar later on, "It's no big deal getting a buddy a four dollar cheeseburger in real life." Among the things she herself was proud of was finding a niche in the Second Life clothing market, Victorian dresses, and being able to take full advantage of it. She was making the equivalent of several hundred real dollars a year, after virtual land rental and other expenses. Not enough to quit her day job, but a nice little bonus.

Soon after, my friend would tell me she'd gotten a position of leadership in her home community. So that meant less time for us to chat. I didn't know anyone else here, and my friends in World of Warcraft had no such distractions. So for a few months I didn't get on Second Life much, having fun with my friends in the Massive Multiplayer Online Game. The objectives there were more easily defined, and my friends there were often around to chat with and often meet up with for questing together.

So what would have better kept my attention here in these early days? More friends for one. But I wasn't sure what to do as random exploring was just showing garishly-decorated residential areas. If I had done an Internet search for Second Life websites, it hadn't resulted in anything at the time. There was no Destination Guide of interesting places. Hamlet Au would later invite readers to give their own newcomer experiences (here).

Several months later, my Second Life friend would get my attention again. The Relay for Life was having their "Relay Walk" with lots of things to see. So I went over, and was impressed with the exhibits I was seeing. I think I saw some of the enthusiasm for the event as well.

My interest once again piqued, I began to look up more about the virtual world after the Relay Weekend was over. I found out about Luskwood, and headed there. The place being a bustling area of people after many sims of little but quiet, it took me a little time to get the gist of how people interacted. But it became my first real hangout in the virtual world, hearing about other places to explore.

Although I had gotten a bushier tail, I was still wearing the starter avatar. Not having a steady income in Second Life, and not wanting to put money in yet, I felt I had to be careful, feeling what I chose would be my appearance for a long time. After a great deal of thought, I settled on the Luskwood Red Fox as my appearance, buying the avatar at Luskwood.

After having had the starter furry for months, it felt like I had finally shed my "baby fur." It is still my everyday look, despite suggestions over the years that I get a more recently made one. I've sometimes commented, "several weeks of thought, several years of use." In October, I caught a lucky break, winning several thousand Linden dollars at a Luskwood anniversary party. With this windfall, I got a second avatar for Halloween: vampire bat. It was fun flying around, but after a while it was back to foxy.

Meeting up with people at Luskwood, I made friends as Lomgren Smalls, Caelia Bailey, Hervy, and Kara Nakamori. Lomgren and Caelia, the latter under another name, I would stay friends with to this day. Kara and I would become close friends for the next several months. She would introduce me to another group of friends, notably Blarion and Keli, whom hung around at a less populated, and less laggy place: the Student Travel Association sims, or STA. My adventures with Kara can be read about in their own article written in March 2011.

Looking up websites about Second Life, I eventually came across the Second Life Newspaper. They asked for Reader Submissions, and giving them a few, I was offered a job there. I was thrilled and happy. I now had a steady income doing something I liked, writing, and an office as well.

So one year later, December 2007, I was doing pretty good. I had a circle of friends, a steady income, and a couple places to hang out. Life, or in this case virtual life, was good.

Since then, quite a bit has happened. Much of it has been documented in my stories for the Second Life. Some however has been given little or no attention in my writings. My friends and family in real life did not usually share my enthusiasm for the virtual world. Some were impressed with only that I was making a little money writing about it. A few simply told me the virtual world wasn't for them, with it's lag and no set goals at the start. Others felt a grown man would there for one reason, joking I was there just for the "cyber-noogie." On the Internet, there were some who spoke against the freedom the virtual world, saying it just meant undesirables came over. And they weren't talking about griefers, but "perverts, aspies, and cripples."

It's my experience the "perverts" here, minus the few whom take it to a form of griefing, aren't a problem to those not interested in their kind of fun, no worse than my real-life coworkers. Mental handicaps, well, to paraphrase a friend, "having asperger's does not mean being a jerk." Almost all I've met are well-meaning individuals, sometimes creative and industrious ones. And for those whom think physical handicaps make one less of a person, well, I have nothing to say to you.

People come here for different reasons, to see the creations others have made, to roleplay in a way simple tabletop gaming doesn't allow, for music and art, to interact with other creative souls like themselves, and more. The result has been a virtual world unlike any other place online. While some individuals have had their time here and departed, others have been coming here to take their place. Perhaps the day-old newcomer you come across today will a year later be a highly successful fashionista, live musician, Relay for Life team leader, or maybe online journalist.

Wednesday, December 16, 2015

Nydia Tungsten is a vixen of many talents, video producer, sim manager,
estate owner, and club owner. But before all those, she made a name for
herself as DJ "Naughty Nydia," with a list of tunes from mild to wild.
This Thursday, Nydia Tungsten will be DJing for her "Anti-Christmas"
Party. Earlier this week, she asked to have a few words with the Newser
to address some concerns she was hearing about the event. So I met up
with her at her home at Mouse Hold Manor.

"Some accusations have come up that I feel need to be put to rest,"
Nydia explained. I asked what was wrong, and she continued, "Some say my
Anti-Christmas DJ set that I do every year is because I hate Christmas
and what it stands for, (that) I hate God and everything to do with Him
and/or her or whatever they believe. That simply is NOT true. I respect
what everyone believes as long as they don't try and force it on others.
And as for Christmas, I LOVE IT, it is the one time of the year most
people around the world think of others more than themselves. I have no
problem with what any one believes."

"What my set does is simply
lighten the mood, since corporations have been slamming us with ads
since before Halloween. I love Christmas but HATE the commercialization
event it has become. Let's face it ....it is BAD. Most of the world
celebrates Christmas, and they sit back and laugh at the U.S. because of
the riots shopping has become, 'Black Friday is when all the idiots go
out and knock little kids over for a ferkin rice cooker. People like
myself just want to scream in frustration over the stupid few. My
'naughty' songs are just a way to release that, not take anything away
from anyones beliefs.

"If your beliefs are easily offended by
others poking fun at it all in good humor, please don't come. But don't
say I hate Christmas or what people believe. There is a statement in my
profile that I really believe, 'Religion is like a penis. It's fine if
you have one; it's fine if you're proud of it, but don't go waving it
about in public. And for God's sake, don't try to shove it down
children's throats.' I was religious at one time, and I loved the jokes
those brave enough to tell me would share with me."

I asked, "How do you think this misunderstanding got started?" Nydia
answered, "The name I gave it I think. I call it my 'Anti-Christmas
Special.' Bad idea on my part I guess. But it isn't anti-Christmas, just
anti-sickening sweet ads on the TV and radio that start in October. It
is all in good fun and I don't bash on anyones beliefs. The songs on the
other hand... well thats another story. You know I love filk, all
kinds, and I pull out all the stops for this time of the year. You know
most of them yourself (Bixyl). would you say any of them bash on
religion?" To her question, I answered "No" as I had never known her to
do so. "They are downright raunchy," she went on, "but all in good fun."

She
continued, "When I started this, there were no other shows like it in
Second Life. I was kinda proud of that, the idea I was the first, for at
least four years now I have been doing this. A few days ago I found out
there is a club hosting it's own version of it. I am thrilled. So
please, before you judge, come see for yourself. That is my invitation
from me to you."

I told her, "A few of them I've heard on public
radio during working hours, 'Twelve Pains of Christmas,' 'Grandma Got
Run Over by a Reindeer.' and one or two others. I recall one of the
parodies was done by a Second Life resident, our own Shockwave Yareach."
Nydia responded, "Yes, my favorite to be honest, 'Grandma got knocked
up by a reindeer.' some are just... well... one of the mid-range songs I
play is 'Frosty the Pervert.' And some just... well... you will have to
hear to believe." "Sounds like a few would make even a sailor blush," I
commented. "I even found a few more for this years event," Nydia
informed.

She went on, "To be honest, my first year doing this, I just called it 'A Filky Christmas.' Well, a few who like my DJ style showed up not knowing that filk equals parodies, and left soon after. This set isn't for everyone, and I try and make sure everyone KNOWS this isn't a 'touching, heart warming Christmas special.' these songs get down right NASTY! But they're funny and I like them. And if at anytime you don't feel this event for you, please leave, I am not saying that to be a bitch. I am saying it because I won't be offended if my friends pull out because it is too much for them or they don't agree with it, I understand, truly I do, and it will not hurt my feelings at all. I want those attending, to enjoy themselves."

"BUT.... If you come and start to spot religious views that you feel we need to observe because your 'Offended' or it isn't 'PC,' prepare to be mocked. We all have our own beliefs, I won't force mine on you and ask that I am treated the same. We are all here to enjoy ourselves. If we want to be told how we are all going to burn in hell, we can go to church. I personally believe religious views should only be shared if asked."

I asked where and when the event would be. Nydia told me, "I will be doing it this Thursday at "The Primal Passion Club" from 4 to 6PM. Sadly, this will be one of it's last events. I have learned this from my SL daughter Rayven. She really did a great job setting it up. I was hoping this club would do better. I love the build and style of it."

"So please come and enjoy a twisted Christmas with us. ... I think I may go back to (calling it) that, just to keep misunderstandings like this from happening."

Nydia and I would chat a little longer, and eventually head our separate ways for the day.

So for Thursday December 17, be sure to head to Castle Primal Passions at 4PM SL time to enjoy the "Anti-Christmas" Xmas parodies event by DJ "Naughty Nydia" Tungsten.

Monday, November 30, 2015

Of Second Life's live musicians, Ichie Kamachi has made a name for herself in the Grid. Her virtual career included having performed for several years in a number of venues, with her songs covering a number of genres. I recently had a chance to talk with her, and we met at the Newser office.

Bixyl Shuftan: "To begin with, how did you find out about Second Life?"

Ichie Kamachi: "Some friend and I were in another 'world called 'There.' we were all ex-pats from the islands. They had some mutual friends who had a sim here in (Second Life) and convinced them to come over."

Bixyl Shuftan: "How did your first days here go?"

Ichie Kamachi: "(giggle) For the first three months, I almost never left the 'island.' I didn't know how or where. Sometimes someone would TP me to a shop then back home again, so my contact with other citizens was extremely limited."

Bixyl Shuftan: "What island was this and how was virtual life there?"

Ichie Kamachi: "The sim that our friends had. They put up a house for us. We'd have gunfights and sword fights and talk, but that was about it. I don't even remember the name of the sim anymore. It doesnt' exist in SL today."

Bixyl Shuftan: "Gun and sword fights?"

Ichie Kamachi: "Yes, being from Hawaii, most of us were into the Oriental/Japanese things, so we all had samurai swords and kimonos. (The guns were) mostly the freebie guns like the one that shoots watermelons."

Bixyl Shuftan chuckles a bit at the mention of watermellons, "So these were just sword matches rather than any roleplay?"

Ichie Kamachi: "Yes strictly for fun and to try out new toys. We were all still us. we had actually met on a forum for former residents of Hawaii."

Bixyl Shuftan: "That sounds interesting. Have the people on the forum continued to keep in touch here?"

It was then that our interviewee remembered something.

Ichie Kamachi: "(giggles) (I) didn't realize I was still wearing my microphone from my show last night." I chuckled a but and she then took it off, "not much, I think I'm the only one who is still around regularly. I have run into them once or twice in the past 3 or 4 years."

Bixyl Shuftan: "So when did you head off the Island for anything other than shopping?"

Ichie Kamachi: "Well we had a visitor who sort of introduced me to poseballs. (laughter) He had his own sim, so I would visit there and met some other people. Oh, and one of the people who was with the Hawaii group but not from the islands, is still in SL. She is my oldest and dearest SL freind and she started TPing me to clubs and everything. She is autistic and this is her social life, so she is still around."

Bixyl Shuftan grins, " 'sort of' introduced you to dance poseballs?"

Ichie Kamachi: "Well, actually it was a kiss ball (laughter)."

Bixyl Shuftan chuckles

Ichie Kamachi: "I didn't know there were such things (laughter). 'There' didn't have things like dance balls and poseballs."

Bixyl Shuftan chuckles a little more, "Sounds like you had quite a surprise."

Ichie Kamachi: "(laughter) I did! opened a whole new world not only on ways to live SL but what kind of feelings could be invoked with other people."

Bixyl Shuftan: "Sounds like things were quite fun for a while afterwards (grin)."

Ichie Kamachi: "They were. (I) found out i could listen to music, hear dj's, dance. (I) met some awesome people... started a relationship that lasted nearly 2 years and we are still friends today thought he's not in SL much anymore."

Bixyl Shuftan: "Sorry about him not being on ... when did the idea of you singing come to be?"

Ichie Kamachi: "In one of the blues clubs, I met a friend and we'd have long talks, and I found out he was a musician. I told him I sang and he kind of perked up. (He) asked about a bunch of songs then got all excited when I told him I could sing them. He was a guitarist only, so I recorded one song and he would play it and play his guitar over it. He encouraged me to try singing live."

Bixyl Shuftan: "I take it the first event went well."

Ichie Kamachi: "Yes though I was tricked into it. It was at Merry Pranksters and he TPed me to hear him play. (But) when I got there, he said 'you're up next two songs.'(momentary pause) I guess it's tradition, (laughter) so they say."

Bixyl Shuftan chuckles, "Had you been singing long in real life at that point?"

Ichie Kamachi: "I had not. I'd done a lot during high school but had pretty much stopped for maybe twenty-plus years."

Bixyl Shuftan: "So you had only just recently started again?"

Ichie Kamachi: "Not until I started in SL. I still don't perform in real-life, only in the grids."

Bixyl Shuftan: "So what happened after the first sesstion?"

Ichie Kamachi: "People liked it I know, and I don't even remember how I got started doing the clubs and things anymore it's been almost seven and a half years."

Bixyl Shuftan: "About how often were you playing then?"

Ichie Kamachi: "At one point i was going two or three shows seven days a week. (I) burnt out after a couple of years. If it's no fun it's time to stop."It was around this point the interview was interupted by real-life events. So we met later to continue the interview.

Bixyl Shuftan: "We were last talking about how often you were performing."

Ichie Kamachi: "Back then two or three shows a day every day, got burnt out. Now (it is) between two to six times a week. Things are picking up again now."

Bixyl Shuftan: "Do you sing mostly songs you or a friend compose?"

Ichie Kamachi: "No, although I do have a few originals from myself and others i'd say 97% of what I sing are covers. I'm not a great songwriter (laughter)."

Bixyl Shuftan grins, "Which are your favorite songs to sing?"

Ichie Kamachi: "Favorite? .. hmmmm, I think right now blues and Celtic. (It) changes a lot though. Whatever my new one is, it's usually a current favorite."

Bixyl Shuftan: "What have been some of your favorite venues to sing in?"

Ichie Kamachi: "Oh so many for various reasons. A lot of them become like family. Endeavour cove, I've been singng there for more than seven years now. I'm at Shades of Grey twice a week and they've become close to me too, but all my venues I love or I wouldn't be there for long (laughter)."

Bixyl Shuftan: "Seven years (at Endeavour)? That's a while."

Ichie Kamachi: "It is! I've been singing almost seven and a half years now."

Bixyl Shuftan: "How has that location changed over time while you were there?"

Ichie Kamachi: "The majority of it stays the same, but they are always tweaking. They have always had the main stage where I started. Then we moved to the blues club, then the ballroom, and now we're back at the main stage again. During the winter we are on the ice at the ice skating rink."

Bixyl Shuftan: "Singing at an ice rink? Sounds like fun. (smile)"

Ichie Kamachi: "(laughter) (The) first couple of years, they kept asking if I could sing and skate. Now they know be better, and no way (laughter)."

Bixyl Shuftan chuckles, "What have been some of the more noteworthy events you've been in?"

Ichie Kamachi: "I do a bunch of RFL. I love playing for the tinies at Raglan they are always so much fun. Memorial concerts always stick in mind, the sad side of SL I've done Second Life Birthday (events) a few times."

Bixyl Shuftan: "Which Second Life Birthday events were these?"

Ichie Kamachi: "Just over the years they've put out calls for live performers. Sometimes I get an invite, some years no (laughter)."

Bixyl Shuftan: "Heh. ... Was there an event in which a number of things went hilariously wrong?"

Ichie Kamachi: "Well not a number, and there are always things that don't always go right during my shows. Once though I did a whole hour long show. I was dressed in a pretty white lace dress with a huge bow in the back. near the end of my last song, I started getting these pictures. No one else saw any clothes. Just the bow. No one said anything (before that), they said they didn't want to interrupt (laughter)."

Bixyl Shuftan chuckles, "That would be, different ... heh."

Ichie Kamachi: "(laughter) I've come to take things like that in stride. It's part of SL.

... But there is always something during the warm months, I inhale flies, a lot, the tiny fruit fly variety."

Bixyl Shuftan: "Oops."

Ichie Kamachi: "They make me cough and choke (laughter)."

Bixyl Shuftan: "That can be, inconveintent."

Ichie Kamachi: "It has been. We all just laugh about it now. The fans don't care, makes you more real, something that's hard to get people to remember sometimes."

Bixyl Shuftan: "I take it over time, the fans have had much to say."

Ichie Kamachi: "Some you see once. some for a season and others keep popping in all the time. Everyone has been so good to me. Some are (like) family to me now."

Bixyl Shuftan: "Sounds very nice."

Ichie Kamachi: "Live music fans are very enthusiastic and wonderful with their praise. I am just happy they like it."

Bixyl Shuftan smiles, "So what are your plans for the near future?"

Ichie Kamachi: "Just keep on keeping on. I have found someone who plays guitar and has offered to make soem backings for me. so hopefull I can get some music out for the fans to buy off my website. I'm hoping to do Scarborough Fair soon. It's public domain and my hubby Honor's favorite song."

Bixyl Shuftan: "How did you meet him?"

Ichie Kamachi: "Met him the first time in one of the clubs that Carla and I owned, 'The Classy Tease.' Been together on and off but recently for more than a year. we've always been friends. Now more and we see each other now and then real-life too."

Bixyl Shuftan: "'The Classy Tease?' Interesting name ... oh? You meet in real life as well?"

Ichie Kamachi: "It was an interesting club (laughter) ... Yes we do. He is a good man."

Bixyl Shuftan: "Nice. ... I take it there was a reason for the 'tease' part of the name?"

Ichie Kamachi: "(laughter) Well you've met Carla. It was a, wasn't a strip club, no dancers but nudity, yes. A lot of flirting yes, some hot suggestive music.... usually (smile)."

Bixyl Shuftan: "Sounds like fun."

Ichie Kamachi: "It was, and it was only run part time also, 4 days a week I think."

Bixyl Shuftan: "Sorry you couldn't keep it up more. ... Was there anything else that

you'd like to mention?"

Ichie Kamachi: "Hmmm I don't think so. Just I'm grateful for all the places that let me sing for them. I know it is hard to run a club in SL. a lot of work. AND also to the fans that come whether once or time and time again. A dream come true for me to sing for them."

Bixyl Shuftan "Well, thank you very much for your time. And I wish you well for the future."

Ichie Kamachi: "Thank you Bixyl."

To find where Ichie is playing next, check her groups. You won't have to wait too long before you next get an opportunity to hear this talented singer.

Friday, November 13, 2015

At my home, on Sunweaver Bay, I often have house guests and teach them
to build things and become good members of the community. Two of these
guests were involved in Second Life wrestling. Back in high school, I was very
good in that sport, but don't have much interest now. In thinking of new
adventure to experience and write about, I thought wrestling might be
interesting, so looked for places to see it. There are many listed, but
the one that caught my eye was FWF, the Furry Wrestling Federation.

I TPed
to the sim to have a look around. The first thing I see there is a
sign, announcing that matches are held every Friday, at 1pm SLT. I
scheduled myself to go see it, in action, the very next Friday. The
night before, I went to the sim, to see if I could figure out how they
worked things at the arena. While nosing about, back stage, I noticed
an av was approaching, on my radar, so I went to introduce myself and
see if he knew anything about FWF. It turns out, his name is Tim Vanes
and he is the usual announcer, at the wrestling matches. Learning that I
was a Newser Reporter, he was happy to explain it and answer any of my
questions.

Tim explained, FWF has been around about three years. The owner and one
of the wrestling stars is Rocco Racclown. He also pointed out that the
wrestlers each developed as characters, good guys and bad guys, like in
TV professional wrestling. The westling moves are done by each having a
HUD which has all the animations required. Wrestlers go through a
training period, to learn to co-ordinate moves and develop their own
characters. Naturally, for any given match, the combatants must work
with a script, to make coordinated animations, but I promised Tim I
would not reveal if the winner was known in advance.

In addition to furry wrestling, they were also connected to GCW, Global
Championship West, which features European style human wrestlers, from
different countries. The head of GCW is Josh Poffo-Yoshie55 and we'll
get back to him in a bit. GCW will begin a regular schedule of
Wednesdays at 3pm SLT, beginning November 25th. Both GCW and FWF are
always hiring and looking for both men and women wrestlers. They both
want more sponsors to get on board.

You can watch FWF matches at the arena and they also can be seen on SL
TV. They also do roadshows at other sims. Matches are typically one to
one and a half hours and have 3 matches, sometimes as many as 5, with
the last match being for the title. I asked Tim if there was special
seating for the press and he indicated a place near the TV camera. I
thanked him for all his help and promised to see him at the next match.

On Friday, I took my seat, before the show began and looked around to
see how many were in the audience. There were only a handfull, so I knew
there wouldn't be any lag to deal with. To my delight, I noticed the
tag, on the guy sitting behind me, was non other than Josh Poffo, the
head of GCW. Learning that I was preparing an article about wrestling,
for the Newser and that GCW would also be mentioned, he was happy to
answer my questions, between matches.

One of the things I questioned is, if one wanted to hire on, what
expense was involved, regarding clothing and HUDs. The cost is very low
and for employees, practically nil. Naturally, the next question was,
"Do they get paid for each match and how much". turns out, unless they
get into "lucky" positions, they aren't paid, though some promoters do
pay one or two hundred in "kick-backs". Probably based on how many
sponsors the venue has. Josh said, they are not in it for the money,
it's a love of being in the show.

At 1pm, the show begins with fireworks on stage and video playing on big
screen TVs, around the arena (make sure you have Media and Voice turned
on). A man, wearing a referee shirt, gets up from the announcers table
and enters the ring, Using Voice, he tells us that the regular announcer
was called away on business in real life, so he would be today's announcer and
Ref.

The first match was Vidiot vs/ Alleycat. To my surprise, Alleycat was
played by Brad, who had been my house guest and he was wearing the
trunks that I had custom made for his character. My very first match and
I already had somebody to cheer for. The arena gives free gesture
collections, so I was able to cheer, when Alleycat won.

The second match was Cam vs/ Fritz. Since I didn't know either of them,
my attention turned to their technique. Because they each use a HUD and
those are not synchronized and the players are likely a great distance
apart in real life, the action had some uncomfortable pauses. Understanding
this, the show was still very entertaining.

Last, we have the title match, Rocco Racclown vs/ Crowley the Bat. This
is better coordinated, but I notice the Ref stops announcing and his tag
says he's AFK. While the Ref is out of action, Rocco leaves Crowley
laying on the floor and walks to the ropes. A mangy looking character,
called Sandy Bytch, sneaks in, from backstage and throws a pie in
Rocco's face. Blinded by pie in the eye, Rocco stumbles around the ring,
Crowley gets up and knocks him down, just as the Ref comes back on and
does a 3 count. Crowley wins the match.

I found this all very entertaining. It matters little if you are into
this kind of show. It is always a pleasure to watch a team work together
to produce any show in real life and all the better, given the nature
of technical limitations, in a virtual world, to see them pull it off in
Second Life. I recommend this adventure to my readers and feel it is
also a good place for sponsors to get more recognition of their products
and services.

Monday, November 9, 2015

A short while ago Tantari Kim the blue vixen well known for being in Second Life over a decade has decided to give DJing a try. DJs have been
around for a long time in Linden land being entertainment in clubs for
earning linden, sharing their music or perhaps DJing for charity. Lots of
pixelated avatars DJ for various reasons. I caught up with the blue vixen herself at her favorite hotspot
Shadowquine Maltz's "The Ark" which is a popular hang out for furries. It's
certainly well known for being far from G-rated.

I asked her was there an event or person who inspired her to DJ. She had this to say.

Tantari Kim: "Well, I listened to a lot of My Little Pony fanmixes, and I
made a mix for myself. I really wanted to show it off, so I did a
one-time show at Cutlass."

Tantari Kim: "The Sunweavers did like the MLP set, but that was it (with what I had). I
had to fight to get airtime and I wasn't invited back. So... I didn't
become a DJ then. It was Bix that made me a DJ."

Bixyl Shuftan (our editor), who helps manage the Happy Vixen, a club on the Sunweaver/Angel Estates,
asked Tantari to DJ yet again. Tantari had a "Vixens of Science set," but
she had to scramble to it put together. Tantari said Bixyl's club was
low pressure, so she could make mistakes as she was starting out. When I
was starting out as a DJ I had a simlar start.

By the sound of it, in a way, Bixyl Shuftan inspried and kept pushing
Tantari to become a DJ. I asked Tantari what kind of music she plays.
One of her themes was the Vixens of Science set for herself. But she's
not a one trick fox. She's capable of playing other musical themes for
herself.

Tantari Kim: "I flipping love science! I love robots and sci-fi and
technology and computers and all that stuff. So SCIENCE was a natural
set for me. I get my themes from all sorts of things, but they have to
be something I care about, something that inspires me."

Tantari said she likes playing music which pleases her furry ears. She
had to this to say about her music selection, and
about sharing her music with her friends and dancers.

Tantari Kim: "All of my sets have a very strong theme. It's a DJ's job to play the music you never knew you always loved. (smile)"

Tantari Kim: "My sets start with: 'This is a Journey into Sound with DJ
Tantari.' That's my goal: to take you somewhere. Make you feel
something. Sometimes even tell a story. It's not enough to be a good
song. It has to fit the feel and message of the set. Otherwise I don't
play it."

I agreed with Tantari that DJ sets have to stay within a certain theme
or else they will sound horrible. Making a DJ set is hard work. She was
saying she spent between 6 to 9 hours making a DJ set making sure all
the songs fit together like a jigsaw puzzle.

Tantari Kim: "Please come check out my sets. Come with me on a Journey Into Sound."

Tantari wishes to share her music so much that she now DJs for three
diffrent clubs around Second Life. She DJs for Rita Mariner and Jenni Greenfield's Club
Cutlass, the Happy Vixen and of course the Ark where I interviewed her
at. Also, Tantari has her own DJ group to join. If you want in on her DJ fan group go on her profile and join for free
DJ Tantari Kim's Sound Journeys. You might expect this if you came to
her sound journeys. And here's a good idea of what she plays from the fox's muzzle herself.

Tantari Kim: "I mostly play electronic dance music and rock, but I'll
play anything as long as it's good and it fits my set. Some rap. A
tiny bit of country. Some classical. A lot of movie and TV themes.
Whatever it takes."

Wednesday, November 4, 2015

It was last week when the community I made my home in Second Life had to deal with a griefer. This wasn't the run of the mill "rezz annoying particles and run" griefer who've I used to see hit sandboxes and social spots. Apparently in the past he stalked one of my neighbors until he was finally banned and laid low for a time. Then through a female alt, he contacted me about a club "she" was part of the staff of that might deserve a write-up. Then some days later through another alt asked about possibly DJing at a club I help manage for a friend, saying "she" could help the club have events on two more days during European hours. We accepted. She also talked to the two people who ran the community's largest club, saying she could do Sundays. She was also accepted.

I'd been talking to this person over Second Life, Skype, and Steam for a few weeks. Then things unravled in a matter of hours. Apparently he spooked the one he'd been originally stalking. He then complained about her and a friend of hers breaking the rules to get at her, and told me not to interfere. As this involved the club, I was obligated to at least tell the owner. The person then told me I was being reported to Linden Lab, "Enjoy being banned from Second Life." Having been around a while, I had a good idea what the Lab could potentially ban someone for, and what people were free to do completely. My response to him, "You know, that was almost amusing. Almost." That didn't make him too happy.

He continued to make trouble, cursing and insulting anyone in the community's groups who inquired what was going on. In the end, he was banned from every sim and group. As word spread, this particular account was banned in at least two other communities as well. One possible account over his Skype contacted me later, claiming he'd been hacked. And another account in Second Life IMed me the next day asking to be on each other's lists in Steam, though the name the person gave was suspiciously like the griefer's. Nothing the next day finally.

While many griefers grow out of their path of misdeeds, this one refuses to change his ways. This person has caused enough trouble for others to write pages on the web just for him, including one that hinted he was evidence that science-fiction/fantasy fans are sexually depraved freaks. I won't honor this chronic troublemaker by mentioning his name, though many reading this will figure out who he is.

So what could we have done to avoid all this? In retrospect, if we wanted to remain a friendly and open community, not much. Yes, groups and their sims can put up walls, not allowing anyone they don't know in. But that's a good way to ensure that a place eventually fades away as real life causes people to eventually drop out of Second Life, and eventually there are too few people to sustain the land. Fortunetly, most communities are open. Most people want to be friendly. Most want to give others, including the newbies, a chance. But unfortunetly that means the occasional jerk will see this openess as an invitation to stir up trouble.

There's no doubt the people who created Second Life were brilliant at what they knew. And what they knew was how to create a virtual world. But when it comes to predicting human behavior, they seem to be again and again taken by surprise. The early Linden Lab predicted Second Life would become a land of adult learning, filled with places like the Sci-Lands and language institutes. That people would come in to use virtual reality to indulge in baser desires such as gambling and sexual fantasies took them completely by surprise. While they did include on the terms of service no harassment of others, it seems they didn't quite prepare for things like particle attacks. One live broadcast from Second Life was interrupted when one griefer caused a bunch of flying male organs to fly across the screen.

The infamous "flying penises" interview hurt Second Life as this bad publicity stained it's image to those outside. It's also part of the reason the twitch streaming service doesn't allow users to broadcast from Second Life. But that's just part of the damage griefers can do, especially when unchecked. While many are content to merely harass, there has been at least one occasion in which griefers launched a continuing barage of attacks on a club as part of an extortion scheme. Linden Lab was no help, even allowing the sale of the "sim crashers" on Marketplace. The only thing the club could do was "hunker down" and limit traffic to those not in their group to a tiny area on their land, handing out invitations once people wanting in were cleared. This would go on for weeks until the extortionists finally gave up and moved on, but not without much revenue being lost by the shops on the land due to disrupted traffic.

More commonly, griefers can disrupt the Second Life experience of people by causing people to be on the watch for them. Some sensitive friends of mine have become afraid of being harassed and stalked, and are reluctant to venture outside a few familiar areas they feel safe in. With griefers making use of newcomer alts most of the time, the response has been suspicion by some of anyone new. I've heard of places that won't allow anyone with an account under thirty days in at all. With all the talk about how to attract people to Second Life, it isn't hard to imagine a newcomer getting frustrated from being eyed with suspicion, "The heck with this, I'll just head on to World of Warcraft!"

Linden Lab could make it a requirement for one to provide real-life information when making an account. But with hackers in the news time to time, such as when some published a list of those using a website for affairs, if you're someone worried about an identity thief cleaning out your account or a woman scarred to death about the thought of a stalker, this option is not one that lets you rest well at night.

A few days before the griefer was thrown out, someone new to Second Life dropped in our community. After the mess, At least one wondered if this was a coincidence. But I had talked for some time with the newcomer, and didn't get the "feel" I had with the troublemaker. So she was left alone, and as time went on, there was no trouble from her. If she was suddenly blocked, that would have meant the loss of a new friend.

Sadly it seems, just like jerks are a part of real life, griefers are a lasting part of Second Life. The best thing one can do is not panic, keep a clear head, and keep from one's heart from being hardened. The infamous zFire Xue of Redzone turned out to have a history of misdeeds in real life as well as Second Life, and ended up paying the price in real life as well. Hopefully this character, and other incurable griefers, will end up sharing his fate.

Monday, October 12, 2015

I recently interviewed Alejandra Jumanya. She is known on Second Life as the owner and clothes designer for the Wetherby's store, with the display name of Mrs. W. But what makes her time on the Grid even more notable is that she is able to come inworld and operate a business despite her real-life troubles in her home country of Venezuela.

"This has been my baby for 7 years," Alejandra told me of her store, "All this time, I wanted to bring some class to SL and to design, because it's a passion of mine."

She went on to say things have been rough lately, "About 10 days ago I made the
resolution to close my store. ... the past few months have been
specially rough for me in real-life. Things have changed drastically, 2 years
ago you could exchange $1 for Bs.4,30. Today you exchange $1 for
Bs.800."

"That's quite a value drop," I commented.

"So my priorities have shifted," Alejandra stated, "Before I
went on to close the store and open a new (one) ... more refined...
with less objects, with higher prices.. and paying clientele... I
thought maybe I should give it another shot at getting a bit more sales
and trying not to close my shop. I was accepted in the SLF&O group, which has like 65,000 customers. And I made a plan to give (the store) a real second chance. If by December things don't change, then I will close and open a new shop."

"It is, I think, one day in Second Life, is like the equivalent to one week in real-life." She laughed a little,"One week in Second Life equal to one month in real-life, one year in SL is like ten in real-life ... regarding work and friendships."

"How did you find out about Second Life?" I asked. Alejandra answered, "On TV, there was an article on Anshe Chung, the virtual land baroness. I thought it would be fun. This is actually my third avatar. The first one I got, I tried a fox costume and I couldn't find a way to take it off. The second time I couldn't get out of the newbie zone." "And the third time was the charm?" I asked. "Exactly," she answered. "I met some friends and together we were able to get rid of our newbie looks and into our trashy ones!"

"Why do you say they were 'trashy?' " I asked her. She answered, "Most clothes were trashy 7 years ago. It was hard to find nice everyday clothes that made you look nice, elegant, simple and yet, beautiful. That's why I started the store and the 'freebie of the day.' I created a four story building with 8 mega prims, I would send a notice to a fashion group, rez my building in a sandbox and let it there for 4 hours until it was sent back. That's how I got money to pay for my first week of rent. I seriously didn't think I would last a month."

"Did you learn to make clothes," I asked, "or did you have a friend making them?" Alejandra answered, "Oh I made them!!! I made them with mismatching seems, necks larger one one side than the other and colors that faded on the wrong places. Luckily I have improved since then. But that's the beauty of Second Life. You are always learning something new. It's a great exercise for the mind. Making mesh is as hard as it was learning to make clothes in SL back then."

"So you found mesh clothes a challenge?" I questioned. Her answer, "It is, I have no formal background as a designer, so to suddenly start working with Marvelous Designer, Zbrush, Maya, Mudbox, Rhino Gold and photoshop amongst other programs it's hard. You will always be learning something new or a new way to do things faster and nicer."

"So what have been some of your more noted designs?" I asked next. Alejandra replied, "I made over 3000 designs so far, it would be almost impossible to choose. But I do have some personal favorites. It has been a wonderful journey."

Alejandra then began to describe some of her real-life difficulties,
"The most difficult thing I find, when it comes to designing is to
separate yourself from real-life and what is going on. I remember
vividly almost two years ago, I was designing a beautiful red gown, with
lace. So feminine and exquisite. While outside my window I could hear
people screaming profanities at the National Guard Police, gunshots,
tear gas coming into my home. My daughter in her crib, sleeping
quietly. I sat there for a few seconds, not knowing if i should cry,
keep designing or do something. I finally snapped awake, took my
daughter and sat in a mattress we had set in the hallway floor between
the bedrooms we had set up for emergencies. It is not safe to be near
windows. Sat there with the baby sleeping in my arms. Once the
gunshots were over, I put her back in her crib and I sat back in my
computer. After all that, how could I go back in the zone and create
something beautiful? That's the hardest part of designing."
It took me some moments to respond, "That's quite an experience." "It is, indeed," she answered, "I normally take about six to eight hours waiting in the street every Saturday to buy food at the supermarket, and not what I want, but what I am so lucky to find. So, when I get home, I am tired, both physically and emotionally to come to Second Life and finish that cute little black dress with large logo embossed dress i was working on the previous night. But after a few hours, some warm tea and music, I am ready to start working."

"That sounds pretty tiring," I commented, then asked, "Have you met many others from your country in Second Life?" "I belong to some Venezuelan groups," Alejandra answered, "and met a friend named Nazirah Avro, she is an amazing singer!!! But I think life is so hard here, we (Venezuelans) try to blend with people from other nationalities to be able feel and act like any other person here in SL."

"Interesting about the singer," I then switched to a topic related to her real-life, "You mentioned the inflation rate of your country earlier. Was that making it more difficult to do business in Second Life?

"It certainly changes things" she told me, "You should never negotiate in a position of weakness, the political and economical turns Venezuela is having in real-life, make you stand in a position of weakness. Making SL money was a game for me a few years back, today (it) is the difference between my daughter having a Christmas present or not. So I work harder, but also, I do it for the money, when before I did it just because I liked it. That is stressful. Basically what I do, is gather all my sales, and buy in America things that are very hard to get here, for instance baby shampoo, Tylenol, deodorant, sometimes toilet paper, clothes and toys for my daughter and ship them over to myself here, and do it again next year. That is quite stressful."

My next question was, "Do you ever mention Second Life to your friends in real life?" Alejandra's answer was, "My husband knows, so does my best friend and my mother. But it's not safe to tell people you make money in US currency, because others might get the wrong impression and you end up in a express kidnapping or even worst, one of your relatives."

My response was to wince, "Ouch, that's something we in North America don't usually think about, except worrying about our kids."

"Things are insane here," she told me, "For instance, Jails are handled by the prisoners. They move the drugs, kidnappings, from jail. They also have complete power inside the facility, only letting guards come into certain areas. Some prisoners are 'fritos' which means they are weak and they must pay their PRAN (jail leader) a royalty every week if they want to stay alive. Some jails are so big they have three or four prans. One of this prans got an early release recently for 'good behaviour,' He slaughtered the other two prans days before he got out and left his brother in charge of the prison. Now his brother gets married and throws an spectacular party inside prison. Prisons have nightclubs, booze, even pools."

"That's hard to imagine here in North America," I told her.

"Oh yes, things are crazy here," Alejandra went on, "My friend's neighbor goes out to the bakery for fresh bread, two blocks from his house. He finds a friend and they stay to talk. Two kids in a motorcycle tried to rob his friend and he tells the kids they need to listen to the Lord, because the Lord died for them! and they shot my friend's neighbor right in the neck, he tried running away from them and died in the middle of the street. They made it very clear they don't like to be lectured."

"Two brothers, 22 and 28 years old, are in a McDonalds with their kids and wives. They came from the christening of one of their kids, the youngest was talking to his dad who lived in another city. Two guys came into McDonalds to rob them. They brothers got nervous because their dad was listening on the other end, the thugs saw that and they shot them both, one was killed the other one on the way to the hospital. Their dad was devastated."

"Things like that happen everyday. A lady left her home at 2 AM to make a line to buy food, she carried with her Bs.2000 (roughly US$2,5) to buy government priced food for her three kids who she left alone at home. On the way out a kid tries to rob her but she recognizes the kid and says 'Oscar, I know your mom, I knew you since you were a kid.' In the struggle, the kid shoots her in the arm (aiming to the heart) and then on her jaw (aiming to her brain), she played dead and he left. She crawls back home, wakes up her kids, they call an ambulance that doesn't come, so they put the agonizing woman in a motorcycle and take her to the near medical center, with her jaw in several pieces. I truly hope she was able to recover."

I was a bit of a loss for words, "Sounds like quite a mess. Any sign of improvement at all?

Alejandra simply answered, "I hope so."

After some moments of quiet, I broke the silence, "Well, I certainly hope that improves for you ... assuming all goes well, what are your future plans for the store?"

"I'm not sure," she answered, "Things are changing drastically fast here. What I would like to do is move to America with my family and start my own organic makeup line, which I already do in real-life here. I make makeup from scratch using only organic fruits, veggies and minerals I extract from the soil myself and process at home. I have been working on this for years now, and hopefully when we live in America I will be able to open my own makeup line. I guess I will always play Second Life, because I have so many friends here and I truly love designing, so I am not going anywhere, no matter where in the world I live."

"Well, hope those go as planned," I then asked one last question, "Was there anything else that you wanted to add?"

Alejandra answered, "I would like to thank you for this opportunity, and all my customers, thank you for your support and love. You can join our group and get the freebie of the day here, or come visit us at our mainstore http://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/Pergola/158/9/22."

It was about this time the interview came to a close, "Thank you again Bixyl."

Tuesday, September 29, 2015

With much of today's technology having once been in science fiction, Second Life could be described as recent science fiction tales of virtual reality come to life. So when someone connected with one of the best known science-fiction characters does something in Second Life, well, it gets interesting. Of Tony Dyson, most people in the US, Europe, and Japan will almost instantly recognize a character he designed: R2-D2 of "Star Wars." So when he took an interest in Second Life, it was a story worth pursuing. I was introduced to the man at a Halloween party in October 2008 by Delinda Dyrssen, and we agreed to have a real interview later.

* * * * *

Tony Dyson has made a name for himself in special effects, notably motion picture special effects, such as Superman 2, Moonraker, Dragonslayer, and especially his work on R2-D2 in the “Star Wars” movies (his resume can be found here: http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0989174/resume ). Recently, a friend told me he had come to Second Life under the name Azar Shelman, and offered to arrange an interview. Naturally, I took the chance, and a time and place was set up.

I met up with Azar at his place ‘Discovery Center’ in Germania Prime, far up in the air, which is accessible from ground level. He showed me around, his experience in special effects showing up right away with the teleport effect between floors. One floor will be “Robotwo Urld,” with a number of robot features, notably a Robot Exhibition, R2-D2 Stand and his iBot2000 Transformer robot. Azar told me that when he installs the Discovery Centre in nature themed sims, this floor would be changed to a Art Gallery and his iBot2000 robot would take on the role of a "spirit mentor."

The largest floor was the Main Theatre, (Theatre of Magic) which had enough seating for 74 avatars. Each seat would have a camera, a “Third Eye Camera System,” to assist the audience in getting the best view. Instead of actors, Azar had plans for a show with automations, “this is more of a narrative theatre, totally programmed.” He was also designing it so it could be changed for different shows fairly quickly. Besides “pure entertainment,” he also planned to give some iBot2000 demonstrations. But the place could be run without automation ús, “We can also produce live performances ... guess you can say we have a third use.”

Another floor was what Azar called the “Events Theater,” which was a smaller theatre to help Second life “Mentors” to teach newcomers about the finer points of our virtual world. Azar also told me he would be producing an “Introduction to Italy and Venice” for Venice tourism, “an example of what can be achieved” of how Second Life can help the tourism industry in real life, “If we find either of the theatres in more demand, we’ll build many more dedicated units.”

The next level is a private office, which Azar calls his "Think Tank," for his group members. "I realized very early on," he said, "that a project this complicated would need a very special team." He told me that his Personal Assistant was 786smile Shelman, ZenMondo Wormser was the project director and Delinda Dyrssen was the media consultant, the newest member to his team was Car Skytower, who was also very new to Second life and a creative director for his real world company Turn Page Studios, and a friend of the family for over 15 years. Azar added that I must of noticed that the building itself was something very special too, "I was very lucky he told me, "to have Damanios Thetan design and build this unique building, he’s been a great source of inspiration on this project."

The ground floor at the “Discovery Center,” has three booths set up. Azar explained one of the things that bugged him about Second Life was that information about a sim was not always easy to come by. So his solution was this information center, one booth having information on what land was for sale or rent, a second for what shopping was available in the area, and a third booth for any events. He also planned to put a “holodeck” on each floor to increase the functionality of each project on that floor. The idea for the ‘Discovery Center’ came to Azar while he worked in Second Life and talking with sim owners.

Of the iBot2000, Azar told me it would be a highly versatile tool for Second-Life users. The robot would be a “transformer,” able to change its shape, such as to an airplane or shuttle or submarine. It would also come with one of a number of modules, depending on the users wants and needs, “when a person buys the robot, they buy what module they want.”

Azar talked about students taking information in on a “learning curve,” and how Second Life was better for a student to learn than on the web, “students can’t meet with each other on a website, but they can here ... socialize, get friendly, have adventures. ... the technology tools are far more advanced here.” Azar also liked how Second Life buildings didn’t need to be designed like real-life ones, that you didn’t need to put in stairs, but design a place around the ability for one to fly and so on, “I like to ce ‰lebrate the fact we can teleport.” Azar’s motto at his Discovery Centre is ‘Celebrating the difference’. Azar told me he was currently working on ten projects in SL.

“How did you find out about Second Life and decide to log on?” I asked Azar. He answered, “I first heard about it on ‘Beyond Tomorrow... Australian program.” When he first logged on, he only stayed briefly not having found enough to keep his interest. Returning in Summer 2008, he was more impressed by what he found, and stuck around. He also “met a great mentor in StarRose Mirlin from Mystic Academy. She showed me how the place works.” Azar had still been in his newbie avatar, and was quickly told that a new look was expected of players no longer new. She got him looking around and exploring places.

Azar told me he had spent over twelve years working on the Internet before coming here, and found Second Life much more useful when it came to conducting business, “I see the difference here ... We can go out to the client. ... I like the psychology of it. ... The whole point is to think outside the box.” Azar commented, “If you’re finding there’s not that much to do, you’re not trying hard enough to find out what you’re good at.”

Azar told me that he has no plans beyond his current project of installing as many "Centers" across the Grid in 2009, at least for the moment, “Everything I want to do is centered around the Discovery Center. ... I’m very happy working here in Second Life.” He has plans on updating his web-sites www.tonydyson.com to help publicize his work in Second Life.

When I asked him how his experience in special effects affected how he saw Second Life, Azar told me, “Special Effects is about imagination, creative thinking and problem solving. I don’t just work in movies, but also theme parks ... animatronics.” He talked how it related to magic and the medieval period sims. “I’d like to think they built Secon ±d Life just for me, but they won’t tell me so. (laughter)”

“I’ll tell you one thing, I’ve never met so much talent.” Azar described the "Builders of Valimar" a Tolkien theme and the Elf lands with nearly a hundred sims dedicated to nature and friendship or the "incredible" Jedi Star Wars worlds, "you must have noticed my very blue eyes?" he asked, "I must have too much ‘Spice’ in my food (laughter), a present from ‘Splintered Rock’ a great Dune role playing sim. All incredible worlds, living and breathing.” He expressed a desire for more guides to show people around Second Life, and was glad to hear about Sean Voss’ efforts in the past. He felt it was important to “help people get to their imaginary side.”

Of the misconceptions about Second Life, such as people thinking it was dominated by sex areas, Azar thought those were the result of lazy reporting, “a couple reporters who never got off Help Island, not really trying.” Despit Ue “people acting silly,” he felt it offered opportunities for people such as housewife’s with a small child, “people can socialize when they normally can’t. ... It has so many positive things going for it.”

Asking him about the “Chev” and OBSS with his name, he told me, “it stands for Knight or Sir it’s short for the French word (Chevalier) because I was knighted in Malta for my charitable works for children world wide. The OBSS letters after my name stand for the order ‘ Ordo Byzantinus Sancti Sepulchri’ in English ‘Byzantine Order of the Holy Sepulchre.’”

Eventually, Azar Shelman/Tony Dyson and I had to part ways, and he wished me, and the readers of the Newspaper, well.

“Be daring, get a few costumes, see what’s available. It’s a living film, become part of it.”

* * * * *

I would hear about Tony Dyson/Azar Shelman a couple more times in Second Life. He appeared on the "Tonight Live" show by Paisley Bebee in December that year, of which I wrote the following:

* * * * *

Azar had a surprise on the show, a number of the audience were in various “Star Wars” avatars, from Jawas to Jedi, a number of R2D2 and other astromech droids, and a squad of Clonetroopers. Paisley’s interview went smoothly, the contents which can be seen in the SLCN.TV archives (yes, that’s me next to that red astromech). B ut what happened after the show was also worth telling. The Clonetroopers stood at attention, and after an initial salute, began cheering Azar.

The artist must have been taken with the devotion of the Star Wars fans as he stepped off stage and went amongst them. Yours truly stepped forward for a few pictures, getting a reaction from a few of the troopers. “Back off fox, he’s ours now.” one told me, though it was obvious he was acting. Paisley talked about having a lightsaber, but had trouble finding it.

Azar and the squad of Clonetroopers talked a little, and they invited Azar to their Star Wars sim. Azar agreed to go, which got a cheer from them. They then began teleporting out, which soon got Azar realizing something, “Um, when I told you I’d visit your bsim, I didn’t mean right now. I’ll go there tomorrow.” “Oh sure,” another member of the audience spoke in jest, “go ahead and disappoint your fans.” “Look guys, it’s 4:30 in the morning where I am,” Azar pleaded, “take it easy on an old man. If I head there, the sound on my voice will be snoring, ‘zzzzzz,’ because I’ll have fallen asleep behind the computer.” The remaining Clonetrooper nearest to him was reluctant at first, but eventually agreed to break the news to his friends. Azar then logged out.

“Don’t underestimate the power of the Force,” in this case the force of fan devotion.

* * * * *

Over a year later in May 2010, he would appear again at a benefit for Cypress Rosewood, whose home had been damaged in a flood. That would be the last I would hear about him for some time, until a few days ago when I saw his name on Facebook. We ended up having a short conversation. He hadn't been on Second Life for a couple of years, but was interested in hearing in goings on about here.

Thursday, September 10, 2015

Titled Friends in "Fly" Places, this interview was done by Franq Blackheart of the Steampunk Herald in April 2011, shortly after his interview with TotalLunar Eclipse.

* * * * *

When
I first had the pleasure of meeting graceful designer in Second Life,
Tensai Hilra, she was engaging in a spot of gardening. That is to say,
she was planting strandy bushels of head-high grass in row after row
along the elegant streets of fantasy steampunk sim, Steelhead.

It
was the eve of April 1st, and she aimed to surprise her husband
TotalLunar Eclipse - possibly into fits of apoplexy, more likely into
row after row of exclamation marks. For Tensai and TotalLunar are the
uncrowned King and Queen of Steelhead, its much-loved benevolent rulers
and caretakers, and the Elven/feline embodiment of its humorous, strong,
steamy spirit.

After offering to build Tensai a lawn mower of
great immensity ("Spring showers," she quipped), we proceeded to have an
out-of-character conversation about the Real Life solidarity of
Steelhead's Second Life community.

I asked about TotalLunar's role as leader of the community.

"He goes by whatever, technically he prefers Owner. It's all pomp and
formality anyhow. We love the place so much we bought it and expanded
it! We focus on the community rather than the profit margin. I'd rather
log in to meet friends than customers. This community is dear to me.
It literally has saved my life!"

Second Life seems to be very powerful in that regard. Was it the community that helped you back to health?

"A lot of good people, if you know where to look," she winks. "I was a
troubling situation... I had just lost my job.. no income unexpectedly,
and no employment for 6 months...'''

Tensai ran out of her medication, needed to combat physical pain and other conditions. Her withdrawal was painful. "I was bedridden. My husband didn't work at the time. No food in the house; it was grim...
"Then, all of a sudden.. Nabila, one of our citizens, shows up at my
house... food in hand!... and says that, spontaneously, Steelhead City
and all the Steamlands got together to help! "She brought food, and even Paypal donations that helped keep the power on, buy more food, and pay rent! "All of that came from the community!

Tensai was incredibly moved by the compassion and caring shown by the Steelhead and SL Steampunk communities. "I wrote this blog entry shortly thereafter ( http://tensaihilra.wordpress.com/2009/11/27/thankyou/ ) "I was unable to speak! I cried for a day in joy... I'm misty eyed, now, just thinking about it. "I then knew I had done right sticking by this community. The steamlands as a whole as well.

An illustration, perhaps, of exactly why people come to Steelhead. And stay.

"Absolutely. "The meds were for chronic pain... something I deal with daily now as I can't, won't, go back on the meds.
"In Real Life, I am in and out of a wheelchair as it ebbs and flows.
But as I always say... doesn't matter if I can't walk in Real Life... in
here, I can fly!"

And with that, I reluctantly left her to
tending her wild garden. When you next find yourself in Steelhead, make
sure you run into Tensai. She has a story to tell.

Tuesday, September 8, 2015

Earlier in Steelhead's history, events there an in other Steam Age sims were covered by the Steampunk Herald (No relation to the Second Life Herald), run by Franq Blackheart. In this interview in 2011, Franq interviewed the mayor and owner, Total Lunar Eclipse, usually known simply as Lunar.

1. What makes Steelhead unique?

You're asking someone who is extremely biased. *laughs*

Steelhead for its relatively small size is a close community. Each unique species is welcome and has a place here from mad scientists to tinies to fantasy oriented persons such as myself. It has always made me feel comfortable to live here even when I wasn't managing.

Also it has such difference in themes from one sim to another that no two places are alike. It is also ever changing, we encourage change and growth. (except St Helens, the city center is going to be downgraded into a smaller rustic town) Port Harbor pier is undergoing changes to add a more pirate theme to it. I learn to build better, I rebuild things, Tensai learns to script and sculpt better and she rebuilds everything.

Also it is stable. Steelhead is over four years old, and before it became Steelhead it was another community altogether. So this city, the concept and idea are over five years. I am also not the only person to run the city, my real life wife of 12 (going on 13) years is my SL partner in crime. We have no intention of stepping down and it is such a strong community that if the grid goes down... Steelhead will simply move to another grid.

2. How will Shanghai's change of rating to Adult affect the community; sales, roleplaying, overall cohesion?

First and foremost we changed the rating of Shanghai to adult to maintain Shanghai as it was before the TOS changes came about. We did not want to alter Shanghai at all. It is notoriously known as a darker place with opium dens hiding underground and shady back alleys now several factions of gangs have moved into the city.

Before we came to the decision to change Shanghai to adult we consulted every single person who had land and rented in Shanghai for their opinion. Several stores in Shanghai would have to move due to the TOS (they openly advertised the use of drugs in the dens) and several stores outside of Shanghai had to move into Shanghai due to the change as well. We weighed the possibility of revenue for businesses and we were prepared to move folks out of Shanghai into Port Harbor or another sim of their choice if the change of rating was not favorable for them. No one moved out.

It also gave vendors ideas for changes. Such as adding a seedy tattoo parlor and skin store and be a bit more open with what they sell. (Tastefully done of course) We are the first Oriental Steampunk themed city and perhaps the only Adult Steampunk sim in the Steamlands, there has been a build in interest as far as that particular change of rating that is enticing to those that wish to be more liberal with what they sell. When we introduce Shangri-La it too will be adult rated.

As far as roleplay, Shanghai is a dangerous place. Being Adult rated gives it a more darker appeal to encourage personal RP. As far as overall cohesion Shanghai has always been the darker of its sister cities, it was a city overmined, overtaxed and one doesn't walk there alone.

One thing I want to address to everyone is the adult theme does not change our community and city standards. There will be no nudity on the streets, tasteful adult wares are to be behind closed doors. The change was specifically to maintain the city as it was. The rest of the estate is moderate, the community does not allow underage users... not avatars. The scamps that live in Shanghai still remain there, their users are responsible adults, they know which places they can and cannot go and are safe because they are protected by the various mobs and pink mecca.

*gets off soap box*

And the city is lovely... dangerously lovely.

3. What recent and upcoming events best reflect the Steelhead spirit?

The new years dance was a fun example of who we are. Tensai created one of her artistic sim wide dance floor. The community celebrated together, destroyed giant clocks, it rained fish and Denny was in his skivvies.

As far as the future? We'll be celebrating Chinese New Years, which as in previous years gets very interesting.

Wednesday, September 2, 2015

When I first entered Second life, I knew nothing about it. I had a friend who wanted me to join for about two yearsm but my life was busy as most people are and too busy for a place called Second Life. But then one day I wasn't as busy as I used to be, and with continuing asking by my friend to join. I did.

Well here I was. I called it "Never land." I didn't understand the concept, my friend ended up going through PTSD in real life so he was barely around. I was confused in Never land. There were a few people that helped out over time, and then one day I was looking for a place to live. I lived on a platform where actually the owner of the sim was making passes at me. It was disturbing to say the least. I know this can happen to anyone and it happened to me.

With the help of a friend in Second Life, I came upon a place called Cape Serenity. As I teleported to the place, I was amazed by the community feel even though no one was around at that very early morning. I was enchanted. I had never seen a place like this before. I really felt this 'home' feeling. Then I contacted Ladyslipper Constantine, who is actually the caretaker of the sim. I wanted to know how much the rent was. After a few hours, I got an IM back from her and that very day. I rented a piece of land. I was so excited, I felt. I stood there for several hours just staring at the entire sim. Smiles. She was extremely welcoming and gentle and kind.

I believe the following day Ladyslipper Constantine she shared with me her hearing problem and at that point I had not shared my hearing problem with anyone. I wanted to be treated just like anyone else who didn't have a disability and I figured Second Life would provide this for me. But it was getting difficult to mask my hearing problem. I felt it was weighing me down in some respects. I couldn't hear everything and I couldn't hear everyone. But what I didn't know, after I decided to open up about C.A.P.D. (Central Auditory Processing Disorder), was that my friends that I had made knew something was different about me but they just couldn't put their finger on what it was. As Ladyslipper shared about her hearing problem, I found myself sharing this information with her about my physical hearing problem even though we both didn't have the same hearing issue.

That was the start of my own journey in sharing with others about Central Auditory Processing Disorder. I knew if I opened up, it would be a challenge. After all its not every day you hear about this particular disorder. What I didn't know that Cape Serenity was part of Virtual Ability. Well I didn't even know what Virtual Ability what it stood for. I eventually was told, so imagine here I was landed on a sim called Cape Serenity part of Virtual Ability and here I was with a physical hearing problem.

The mentors at Virtual Ability through time helped me with not just opening up about my physical hearing problem, but how to cope with it, how to deal with people who have such disbelief, which by the way I really understood them more than they realized only for the fact that after all its not that well known. C.A.P.D not as well known as other disabilities, but to be honest there were moments I wish I didn't say anything about C.A.P.D.

I learned that even though people have disabilities they have other gifts they are able to share, that there is a purpose a meaning behind everyone, no matter what disabilities you have. Most importantly for me is I met these wonderful women who have different hearing issues, and I found out even though we don't have the same ones we all have certain things in common none of the less. Listening to their stories of how they have been affected in real life or Second Life with a hearing disability, they gave me a gift, the gift of strength that under any circumstances that you forge on and believe in yourself. And it really doesn't matter what anyone thinks or feels, that you are important in this world and no matter what you have to deal with you are still important. They are strong, those women whom I met in Virtual Ability. They say strength comes from wisdom and they are very wise from Gentle Heron, Ladyslipper Constantine, iSkye Silverwebm Treasure Ballinger, Treacle Darlandes, and Winter Wardhanid and countless others.

I'm so grateful they share with people like me who have a disability and those who have other disabilities. I"m so grateful and continue to be how much they have helped not just in Second Life but in real life. How they give their time to mentor those like me they really care and they don't do it for any other reason then a need to help people. They are selfless they mentor from the heart. They embrace you when you are down they give you hope, encouragement and belief in one self. They give you courage to rise above, they help those who need help and help them to become an even better person then you are, what is the expression that comes to mine I have heard before, they give you wings to fly... I will always be profoundly grateful for those who are part of Virtual Ability, that no matter where I go where I am they are always in my heart, Thank you.

Monday, August 31, 2015

On Saturday August 15, one of Second Life's most unique entertainers celebrated his tenth anniversary, or rezzday, in Second Life: Tuna Oddfellow. A magician in real life, known as "Fish the Magish," he has distinguished himself in the past with winning "America's Got Talent" competition in Second Life, and over the past several years to today with his "Odd Ball" performances. which remain a one of a kind performance that has yet to be duplicated by anyone else. Recently I had a chance to interview him at the Odd Ball's location in the Dragonhenge sim. Tuna was speaking in Voice, so not every single word was written down.

"What's happened in Second Life?" Tuna spoke, "{I'd like to say my life is stranger than fiction, and that my Second Life is stranger than real life." He mentioned his partner Shava Suntzu as active with fundrasing and cross-training. He also expressed sadness for not being able to do his real-life magic performances due to health issues ( https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dnRVNNL-xI4 ) , "My magic is something that I haven't done in a long time."

Tuna stated in real life, he lived in the town of Salem Massachussets, before that in Sommervile, one of Greater Boston's suburbs. "Salem was the great fort for coming to American when it was colonial times." he stated pirates figured into the town's history, as well as the witch trials.

Tuna also went on to say he had been a Freemason for five years, signing up during his "Second Life tenure." He had been friends with one, who showed him a lodge on the grid. Freemasonry, like so many other organizations, had made it's way here. He had met the person at the Second Life Convention in San Francisco, "It's funny how my Second Life, real life, and Freemasonry combined."

Of his newcomer days, Tuna remarked, "I was trying to figure out my place in Second Life. In real life, I was a magician. I did not see myself as an artist." But like others, he learned. He directed my attention to the set-up around me, "Everything you see here, I created. I've really come a long way in ten years." He had been doing the Odd Ball in some form since 2007, "What can I do to create a magical experience in Second Life."

His early days would sadly experience a tragedy. He had been dating a girl early on, and in October 2005, he was approached by her real life son whom had some bad news. She had complained of a headache, then passed out. It turned out to be an anerysm, and she died. Tuna ended up conducting her memorial service online. One of the people there was so impressed with how he did, Tuna was asked to do the person's wedding. So Tuna did the part of a rabbi, as in real life he was Jewish. He then set up a wedding business, "Magic Touch Wedding Makers." Many people called on him to help with their weddings. Tuna advertised his business as covering the wedding from proposal to the honeymoon. He worked on special Valentines Day experiences, one on one virtual light shows with his client and their love.

Tuna described the Odd Ball as coming from a tribute show, "The Residents." They were a performance art group going around, and they would pass around pens each with a giant eyeball on the top with a top hat. "Google yourself and see." (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Residents) Tuna described them as being a band for forty years, "really, really weird." He found them a creative band whom combined their music with visual art displays. When he first began planning what would be the Odd Ball, he had the intention to create their kind of experience.

Talking about Shave SunTzu, he described her as among "one of the most transparent advocates of Internet aynomymity." Of his presence on the Internet, "As much as I'm well known here (as) Tuna Oddfellow," he's also known on a number of Internet pages as his magician name, "Fish the Magish."

Tuna's big break came when the NBC TV network did a show in Second Life. This was when they were running "America's Got Talent," and decided to do a Second Life version. They did a "cattle call" for entertainers, and ended up with different types of Second Life talent showing up (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jTqAILJvxj0), which they narrowed down to ten residents, including Tuna. The inworld audience of the show was about 300 residents, "as packed as you can get." The celeberty judges watching the show did so from a sim apart from them. Tuna was among the five finalsts whom in addition to the 300 residents inworld was seen by the nationwide TV audience of "America's Got Talent," about 70 million people, who then voted as to who would be the winner. And it was Tuna whom won the title of the Most Talented Avatar in Second Life, with one million Lindens as the prize, or about four thousand US dollars (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OAvFsYPNCYo). Tuna called it "one of the most wild experiences one can hope for virtual worlds."

Tuna then brought up his tenth rezzday shows. There would be two that day, one at 6PM SL time and the other at 12 Noon. The one at Noon would have the music done by Beth Odets, "The crazy violin player. Petlove Petshop would be at the 6PM one. He would be in another a few days later on Tuesday, with Jana Kyomoon as the musician. Tuna stated that his Rezzday Oddballs might go on for a while, "This is my rezzday celebration until I say it's over."

The only problem he forsaw for his rezzday performances was whether or not Shava would be there. She was not feeling very well. He noted she had not logged onto Second Life since leaving the Grid in October 2013 due to the controversy surrounding their change of the terms of service in regards to content creator rights (http://slnewser.blogspot.com/2013/09/the-odd-ball-closes-in-second-life-due.html ), soon followed by Tuna and the Odd ball, they taking their performance to the InWorldz grid.

Despite the Lab under Ebbe Linden changing the lines of the ToS in question, Tuna felt the issue still was not completely resolved. Tuna commented that he saw himself more as an enterpenur than an activist when he started the Odd Ball. But he felt Linden Lab's changing of the Terms of Service at the expense of the rights of content creators was a violation of what he called the "Oddball Principle."

Tuna stated information about the Odd ball could be found by all at http://www.oddfellowstudios.com/ . He mentioned science jounrals he came across seemed to be lacking about what they've found about how his kind of performances affect the human mind, Shava being especially keen in pointing things out. People had been telling him that the Odd Ball left them feeling relaxed. Tuna felt the special effects of his performance had an effect on human brain waves. He also felt there was a "Cathedral effect" of the huge space the Odd Ball was in, "For a moment, the brain just goes Woosh!" People seeing it for the first time would say things like "This is incredible, this is amazing." It made him happy to hear that those with Post-Tramatic Stress Disorder issues were getting some relief at his shows.

Of his accomplishments in real life, the one he was the most proud of was being the father of a 23 year old girl. He also considered himself an activist of a few causes. He had campained for gay rights despite getting ill in the middle of it, "part of who I am." He expressed pride at living in Massachusettes where the people were more inclined to side with such causes, "We fought City Hall, and we won." He told me he was transparent about who he was, seeing no need to hide his Second Life from his real life, and vice versa. He talked about what he saw as the "Theory of obscurity ... look at the art, look at the person ... Madonna, Michael Jackson ... part of the understanding is who that person was. .... When you understand the artist, you live the art more, or dislike ..."

"When people experience my art, The Tunaverse," he told, "When you first come and you see it ... " he described it as the "loss of the Odd ball virginity, 'Oh my God, this is unlike anything I've ever seen before.'" Tuna told he had yet to see or hear of anything like it in Second Life, InWorldz, or Opensim." He described himself as having "diversified" his virtual experience, having avatars in different places, as well as having his show outside Second Life. One of his more unique performances was at the Second Life Convention in 2010, when he did the show in both Second Life and in real life at the con, "I guess I could go on and on."

In creating the Odd Ball, Tuna says one of the challenges was that he saw himself as a performer and not a visual artist, "There were a lot of challenges." When he came to Second Life in August 2003, the virtual world had only been around for two years and had a total signup of about 30,000 people. It was a time when it was experiencing "exponential growth." By November three months later, the total number of accounts had doubled to 60,000. He was learning through tutorials, "I wouldn't call myself a programer, but I learned how to tweak the code." Pointing to the center of the Odd Ball set, "we call this device the 'hypercube.' " Tuna compared it to the holodeck in Star Trek, "being able to take a group of objects age get them in one prom." He credited its creation to another builder, getting permission to do his performances on it in Second Life and other places.

Another challenge was less about design than endurance. Tuna described himself as having, "fought from the begining for this art to be permanent." He wanted for the Odd Ball to "be able to be used in grids that don't exist yet." Also, he felt it should always be a live performance, "Perhaps it would be scripted, but that's not the direction I wanted ... it should be organic, live theater." One challenge was imposed by Linden Lab, the prohibition of megaprims, "can't create prims larger than 64 meters." The megaprims that can occasionally be seen on the very oldest structure were done through an exploit.

"Virtual worlds are a fantastic place," Tuna spoke, "being able to go beyond the limits. If you had told me ten years ago when I was a street magician that I would carry the same tricks to virtual reality ... How do you create an experience of wonder in a place where one of the first things you do is learn how to fly?" When he started, he didn't do all the scripts himself, and eventually had to learn how to do those. Another thing he had to do was learn how to promote himself. He had found it easier to promote the works of others instead of his own. But eventually he did, promoting the Odd ball

"I love what I do," Tuna told, "I love doing magic. It kills me that I can't do the magic I used to in real life. But I can so the virtual experiences.

When I had a chance, I asked Tuna about his white-skinned avatar. He explained when he first came to Second Life, a friend of his from New Orleans had opened up a vampire club. It had a reputation for being an avant-garde place for strange things. Tuna thought it had a "Dark Shadows" influence. It was in Collinwood, which Tuna called a great estate with a castle. The avatar itself, while inspired by it, really came from his imagination. For the face, he wrote to a content creator for help, purchasing the original rights to it. It's design was original, down to the testure. Eventually, Tuna replaced parts of it. Of the shape, pointy ears, and the white skin, "it just felt right."

Tuna really didn't like the idea of looking like anyone else, "not a cookie-cutter." He remarked that some Second Life anthro fans considered him an "honorary furry" with his desire to be unique. Of the top hat, that was from him being a musician in real life, "became one of my symbols here." His tip jar was also a top hat, designed by Alessia Stella, whom had created a line of tip jars, "she deliberately created this tip jar so it could be changed and personalized.

It was about this time Tuna had to take care of other matters. And we went our seperate ways.

A few days later, Tuna's tenth anniversary event took place. To his relief, Shava was able to attend the second one. It was quite an event, the two Odd Balls, attended by some dozens of avatars.

The Odd Balls continue in Second Life, IM Tuna or Shave SunTzu about being notified when they take place.